James H. Clark, founder of Silicon Graphics and Netscape, never recieved his high school diploma. But he did go on to college:

Quote:

He dropped out of high school after being suspended, and spent four years in the Navy. Clark began taking night courses at Tulane University's University College where, despite his lack of a high school diploma, he was able to earn enough credits to be admitted to the University of New Orleans. There, Clark earned his Bachelor's and a Master's degrees in physics, followed by a PhD in computer science from the University of Utah in 1974.

A few years ago I heard Richard Branson interviewed on the radio and he mentioned a string of his friends who are all in business and all left school early. He explained that, by the time someone left university with a business degree, they were looking to settle down, while people like him had 10 years of trying to make money behind them.

Jamie Oliver the TV chef and restauranter left school at 16 with no academic qualifications. He makes a point of telling us this in each episode of "Jamie's Dream School" a UK TV series following his attempt to give other young people who failed at school a second chance using "experts" from outside education as the teachers - so far, without much success!

Actually I don't know, he's 17 so maybe he has some kind of high school degree by now. There are probably a number of child stars who never got an official high school diploma, or only gained an equivalent based on questionable standards. I guess the OP is really about people succeeding after reaching adulthood.

Last edited by TriPolar; 03-30-2011 at 12:08 PM.
Reason: jack beat me to it

I don't think there's an important distinction between those who graduate from high school and those who don't. A high school degree generically only represents minimal achievement in literacy. Where used as a job requirement, a GED is an acceptable alternative, and unlike college degrees, I don't think there much checking on the validity of a claim to have graduated or obtained a GED. I wouldn't distinquish this much from successful people who have not graduated from college.

Another thing to note, not all people earn a high school diploma before entering college. I know someone who left high school in the 11th grade to start college because of a change to SS survivor benefits that required him to be enrolled in college before the change took place. He never graduated from high school, or college, but has been gainfully employed for many years.

Edison began school in Port Huron, Michigan when he was seven. His teacher, the Reverend G. B. Engle considered Thomas to be a dull student. Thomas especially did not like math. And he asked too many questions. The story goes that the teacher whipped students who asked questions. After three months of school, the teacher called Thomas, "addled," which means confused or mixed up. Thomas stormed home.

The next day, Nancy Edison brought Thomas back to school to talk with Reverend Engle. The teacher told his mother that Thomas couldn't learn. Nancy also became angry at the teacher's strict ways. She took Thomas out of school and decided to home-school him. It appears he briefly attended two more schools. However, his school attendance was not very good. So nearly all his childhood learning took place at home.

I know someone who dropped out of HS, never went to college, but somehow got a PhD in math (and probably an MSc as well) and had a full career as a math professor. It is a long story with some surprises that he told me once. He also managed to talk his way into OCS and became a pilot in the navy during the Korean war. I guess they were really desperate (and he was VERY charming).

Predictably, most of the people on that list are entertainers. Whether you want to consider news anchors like Peter Jennings and John Chancellor "entertainers" is up to you. There's probably a snide comment to be made about Harold Robbins.

Predictably, most of the people on that list are entertainers. Whether you want to consider news anchors like Peter Jennings and John Chancellor "entertainers" is up to you. There's probably a snide comment to be made about Harold Robbins.

There are several British people on that list so I wonder how they are determining "did not finish high school". There is no concept of graduating high school, nor is there a diploma. At the time relevant to the people on that list, the minimum school leaving age was 16. Most people did leave at that age, although it was possible to stay on for an extra 2 years to get 'A' levels. This was generally done only by people planning to go to college/university, which was a significantly lower portion of the population than today.

So if saying that David Bowie did not finish high school means that he left at 16, that was perfectly normal at that time.

Good point. With a list that long, it's not surprising that they are stretching things a bit. But it's a starting point, and a lot of the named people are American. For them, the concept of "high school diploma" does make sense.

There is no concept of graduating high school, nor is there a diploma. At the time relevant to the people on that list, the minimum school leaving age was 16. Most people did leave at that age, although it was possible to stay on for an extra 2 years to get 'A' levels. This was generally done only by people planning to go to college/university, which was a significantly lower portion of the population than today.

So if saying that David Bowie did not finish high school means that he left at 16, that was perfectly normal at that time.

note for Americans: British "dropouts" may have gone to the many private schools in England, which are vastly superior to a typical American high school. I know British people who left school at 16, with a solid knowledge of Latin, basic calculus, and Shakespeare.

Actually I don't know, he's 17 so maybe he has some kind of high school degree by now. There are probably a number of child stars who never got an official high school diploma, or only gained an equivalent based on questionable standards. I guess the OP is really about people succeeding after reaching adulthood.

Slight hijack, but at least it's been several days since anyone's posted here. I thought about this thread and your post last night while sitting in a small bar chatting with a 21-year-old bargirl. Quite a looker, too. She went into graphic detail about how hot Justin Bieber made her and what she would like to do to him given the chance. If he ever holds a world tour, I shudder to think of the rip that will appear in the fabric of the space-time continuum should he get let loose here with his raging teenage hormones.

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